Published: Wednesday, December 4, 2013 at 9:29 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, December 4, 2013 at 9:29 p.m.

For Dana native and former East Henderson High standout Richard Kent, football has always been a big part of his life.

Last week, Kent, who is the defensive backs coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League, had one of the biggest days of his career. On Nov. 24, he celebrated with the Roughriders on their home field as they won the 101st Grey Cup with a 45-23 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

It was the first Grey Cup title of Kent's long professional football coaching career, which includes stints in the NFL, UFL and NFL Europe.

“Games like these are few and far between. You don't get many opportunities to win a Grey Cup or any championship at the professional football level,” Kent said. “It's certainly an incredible experience I'll never forget.”

He also won two professional titles in NFL Europe with Berlin in 2002 and Amsterdam in 2005.

One of the first people to congratulate him was his former football coach at Flat Rock Middle School, Mac Cumbo.

“I coached Richard at Flat Rock around 1975-76, I think. During his college years at Appalachian State, he spent many weekends after football with us. We have stayed close all these years. He is a super coach and great guy. I'm very proud of and for him,” Cumbo said.

Kent, a 1979 East graduate, said he had always dreamed of being a professional football coach.

“It's what I always wanted to do. You just have to work hard and keep yourself headed in the right direction,” he said. “I'm certainly very blessed to be at it for this long. Sometimes you really don't have a choice, because it's very competitive.”

Despite being thousands of miles away from North Carolina, Kent has a North Carolina connection on his team: Quarterback Darian Durant.

“He's a good ol' Carolina boy who played at North Carolina. He's from Florence, S.C. He's a great player, and he just shredded the competition in the playoffs. He's a winner,” Kent said.

Kent said it was the third time Durant was in a Grey Cup game, the other two being in 2010 and 2011. This was Durant's first Grey Cup win as a starting quarterback.

Following high school, Kent was a quarterback at Appalachian State from 1979-81 and went on to Clemson to earn his Masters.

Kent has been coaching football for the past 29 years. At the collegiate level, he was an assistant at six different colleges from 1985-2000. In 1986 when he was with Clemson as a graduate assistant, the Tigers won the ACC Championship.

From 1999-2007, he was with NFL Europe as an assistant on four different teams and also served as personnel director for three years. From 2003-08 he was an NFL International Scout and Consultant for the NFL International Player Development Program.

Kent came to Saskatchewan after serving as the defensive backs coach for the Omaha Nighthawks of the UFL in 2012. He was the team's special teams coordinator in 2011. Prior to that he was the defensive backs coach for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in 2009.

“This is my third job with the Canadian Football League. I love it up here. I'm a transformed Canadian,” he said Wednesday night as the temperature in Regina, Saskatchewan, dipped to minus-10 degrees. “We're in what they call a 'prairie winter' up here right now. It's definitely cold. You just get used to it,” he said.

He still keeps tabs with his former coaches and teammates and others from the area who made it to professional football.

“When we go down to the States in January and recruit American players, sometimes I'll see some old friends like Mickey Marvin. It's always good to see those guys and share stories. We're still like a close-knit fraternity,” Kent said.

And people back in his hometown keep tabs on him.

“Whenever we play on TV, I call my grandmother, who lives in Etowah, and tell her what channel we're on. She always wants to watch our games,” he said.

<p>For Dana native and former East Henderson High standout Richard Kent, football has always been a big part of his life.</p><p>Last week, Kent, who is the defensive backs coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League, had one of the biggest days of his career. On Nov. 24, he celebrated with the Roughriders on their home field as they won the 101st Grey Cup with a 45-23 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.</p><p>It was the first Grey Cup title of Kent's long professional football coaching career, which includes stints in the NFL, UFL and NFL Europe.</p><p>“Games like these are few and far between. You don't get many opportunities to win a Grey Cup or any championship at the professional football level,” Kent said. “It's certainly an incredible experience I'll never forget.”</p><p>He also won two professional titles in NFL Europe with Berlin in 2002 and Amsterdam in 2005.</p><p>One of the first people to congratulate him was his former football coach at Flat Rock Middle School, Mac Cumbo.</p><p>“I coached Richard at Flat Rock around 1975-76, I think. During his college years at Appalachian State, he spent many weekends after football with us. We have stayed close all these years. He is a super coach and great guy. I'm very proud of and for him,” Cumbo said.</p><p>Kent, a 1979 East graduate, said he had always dreamed of being a professional football coach.</p><p>“It's what I always wanted to do. You just have to work hard and keep yourself headed in the right direction,” he said. “I'm certainly very blessed to be at it for this long. Sometimes you really don't have a choice, because it's very competitive.”</p><p>Despite being thousands of miles away from North Carolina, Kent has a North Carolina connection on his team: Quarterback Darian Durant.</p><p>“He's a good ol' Carolina boy who played at North Carolina. He's from Florence, S.C. He's a great player, and he just shredded the competition in the playoffs. He's a winner,” Kent said.</p><p>Kent said it was the third time Durant was in a Grey Cup game, the other two being in 2010 and 2011. This was Durant's first Grey Cup win as a starting quarterback.</p><p>Following high school, Kent was a quarterback at Appalachian State from 1979-81 and went on to Clemson to earn his Masters.</p><p>Kent has been coaching football for the past 29 years. At the collegiate level, he was an assistant at six different colleges from 1985-2000. In 1986 when he was with Clemson as a graduate assistant, the Tigers won the ACC Championship.</p><p>From 1999-2007, he was with NFL Europe as an assistant on four different teams and also served as personnel director for three years. From 2003-08 he was an NFL International Scout and Consultant for the NFL International Player Development Program.</p><p>Kent came to Saskatchewan after serving as the defensive backs coach for the Omaha Nighthawks of the UFL in 2012. He was the team's special teams coordinator in 2011. Prior to that he was the defensive backs coach for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in 2009.</p><p>“This is my third job with the Canadian Football League. I love it up here. I'm a transformed Canadian,” he said Wednesday night as the temperature in Regina, Saskatchewan, dipped to minus-10 degrees. “We're in what they call a 'prairie winter' up here right now. It's definitely cold. You just get used to it,” he said.</p><p>He still keeps tabs with his former coaches and teammates and others from the area who made it to professional football.</p><p>“When we go down to the States in January and recruit American players, sometimes I'll see some old friends like Mickey Marvin. It's always good to see those guys and share stories. We're still like a close-knit fraternity,” Kent said.</p><p>And people back in his hometown keep tabs on him.</p><p>“Whenever we play on TV, I call my grandmother, who lives in Etowah, and tell her what channel we're on. She always wants to watch our games,” he said.</p>